Rebirth In Raindrops
by ElegantButler
Summary: A toddler with a mullet changes the lives of Sora, Riku, and Kairi.
1. Chapter 1

**Kingdom Hearts**

**Rebirth in Raindrops**

By Axel Ingleson and Darcy Black-Valentine

Disclaimer: The characters from KH do not belong to us. They are the property of Disney and Square-Enix.

Rain fell in large warm droplets as Sora, Riku, and Kairi hurried home from Riku's little island.

They got to the boats and were about to head back when an oval of swirling light appeared before them in the same manner as the portals of darkness used by members of Organization XIII.

Sora stopped short as a small boy with a mullet crawled out.

The boy looked around, confusedly for a few moments, then began to wail up a storm.

"Um…" Sora stammered. "What…?"

The little boy grabbed Sora's pant-leg and tugged on it.

"Da-da?" he asked, innocently.

Sora looked down at the infant in surprise, while Riku and Kairi both chuckled. "Huh?"

"Don't you wuv me, da-da?"

Sora blinked. "I'm not… I mean I…"

The child began to wail again.

"Well, aren't you going to pick him up?" a woman nearby chided. "Can't you see he needs you? What kind of father are you anyhow?"

"But…" Sora stammered. "I…"

"Sora," Kairi suggested.

"Perhaps you should pick him up?" Riku pointed out.

The child continued wailing until Sora relented and picked him up.

Once he was no longer afraid and alone, the little boy began grabbing, playfully, at the raindrops as they fell.

"There's something familiar about this kid," Sora muttered, as he carried the little boy back toward his home with Riku and Kairi in tow.


	2. Chapter 2

Kingdom Hearts

**Kingdom Hearts**

**Rebirth in Raindrops**

The walk home was pretty uneventful…until they passed the music store. As they passed the window display, the toddler reached back over Sora's shoulder and cried,

"Wanna sitar! Wanna sitar!"

Sora looked back at the child, then back at the window where, indeed, there was a sitar propped up behind the glass. As he looked at it, he vaguely remembered seeing something like it somewhere before.

"Now, where have I…?"

Then, it clicked. He looked at the child in his arms and realized just who he looked like.

"Demyx! But…how did you…?"

The toddler looked up at the sound of his name, but went quickly back to reaching for the sitar on display.

"I wan it! I wan it!"

"Well, Sora? What are you going to do about it?" Riku asked.

Sora looked at the child who was still reaching for the instrument and bit his lip.

"Wanna sitar! Wan it now!"

Sora gripped his hair with his free hand and said,

"I can't think with this kid wailing at me!"

He passed the baby off to Kairi who automatically held him at arm's length and said,

"Oh no, I'm not taking care of it."

The baby started wailing again which was eating at the nerves of all three teens present. The sounds were also attracting stares from the people passing them, some of them muttering about child neglect.

"Oh jeez, I'll take him."

Riku took the baby and it immediately calmed down, popping his thumb in his mouth in the process. Sora looked on, a little jealous and asked,

"Why wasn't he quiet with me?"

Riku shrugged and replied,

"Maybe you're just a bad father."

Sora made a pout face at him and said,

"Fine then. He likes you so much, maybe you should keep him."

"Fine, I will." He looked at the infant and offered the baby his finger to play with. "Come on, Demyx. Papa will buy you a nice sitar."

Sora and Kairi gaped at Riku as the older boy took the baby into the music store.

"Excuse me," Riku asked one of the store's employees. "Do you have plushy instruments?"

"As a matter of fact, we used to carry a whole bunch. But we only have one left."

"It's not a sitar, is it?"

"Yes, it is."

Riku beamed triumphantly at his luck. "How much is it?"

"30 Munny," the employee told him.

Riku paid the man. The man gave Riku the plushy sitar and ruffled the baby's mullet.

"I'll see you again when you're a big boy," he told the infant. "Then, you can buy a real sitar and learn to play."

The baby clapped, happily, then hugged Riku.

"I wuv you, Papa," he told him.

"I love you, too, Demyx," Riku told the baby as he held him with one arm and the bag with the plushy sitar in the other.

On the way he stopped at the local baby stuff store and picked up a stroller. Placing the baby and the plushy in the stroller together, he walked home with the infant happily playing with the new toy.


	3. Chapter 3

Kingdom Hearts

**Kingdom Hearts**

**Rebirth in Raindrops**

Riku's mother was standing in the doorway with her arms folded, crossly, in front of her when he finally got home that evening. He had also stopped to buy baby clothes, diapers, baby food, and a few other supplies including a rattle and a pacifier.

"You're late," she told him. "Do you have any idea how worried I…" her complaint fell away when she saw the baby. "Where'd he come from?" she asked.

Riku shrugged. "He just crawled out of a portal and into this world," he told her. "I have no idea where he's from, and I don't know how to get him back there."

"Well, it looks like he likes you. Does he have a name?"

"Demyx," Riku replied.

"Hello, Demyx," Riku's mother cooed at the baby. "You're such a cute little thing, aren't you?"

Riku smiled.

"So, you're a father now," Riku's mother considered then reworded her statement, "I should say you're a mother now, Riku. And it looks like you're planning on raising the baby. Your old crib is in the basement. I'd been saving it for when you got married. I was going to sell it next week, though, since you're obviously head-over-heels for that boy Sora. But it looks like I'm going to be a grandmother after all."

Riku left little Demyx in his mother's care while he went into the basement and fetched the crib his mother had been referring to. When he got back, he found his mother had taken a bottle from the supplies he'd bought and was feeding little Demyx.

She handed the bottle and the baby to Riku and showed him how to hold them properly.

Riku got the hang of it quickly and was quietly feeding little Demyx when a sudden pain in his abdomen caught his attention.

"Riku?" his mother asked. "What's wrong?"

"My stomach hurts," Riku explained. "It feels like it's on fire."

"Let's have the doctor look at you," his mother suggested. "It's probably just heartburn, but one can never tell."

She drove Riku to the hospital, with little Demyx in tow. When they got there, Riku described his symptoms to the doctor, who examined him, carefully.

It was during the ultrasound that the doctor found the source of the problem.

Inside Riku, in a womb whose presence surprised both Riku and his mother, was a tiny ball of flame. Encased in the flame, was a small embryo. Neither the womb nor the embryo seemed to be burning. The flame's presence didn't seem to be affecting either of them. Riku could feel its heat, but it wasn't actually harming him in any way.

The baby, who was being held by Riku's mother, reached out for Riku.

The doctor nodded to Riku who put his shirt back on and took the baby.

"So, what do you plan on doing?" she asked, seriously. "You won't be hurt if you carry it to term. But…"

"I'm keeping it," Riku decided.

"Are you sure?" Riku's mother asked. "You've already got one baby to look after. Are you sure you're ready for two?"

Riku nodded. "I've fought Heartless and Nobodies, shouldered Darkness, and defeated Xehanort," he told her "I'm pretty sure I can handle a couple of babies."

"Babies are a lot harder to deal with than Heartless and Nobodies," his mother told him.

"Please, how hard could it be?"

Time Skip: The next day

Sora looked out at the vast ocean, still filled with that childlike innocence of what the other worlds hold. Kairi looked up at him and asked,

"Were you even listening?"

Sora looked down at her and asked eloquently,

"Huh?"

She shook her head, causing her red hair to flip from side to side.

"Never mind."

They heard footsteps and looked up to see Riku carrying baby Demyx in his arms, a bag slung over one shoulder. Sora hopped down, excitement in his eyes and said,

"C'mon, let's spar!"

Riku shook his head.

"I can't. I have to watch the baby."

Sora pouted again and crossed his arms over his chest.

"You're just using that as an excuse because you know I'll kick your butt."

Riku smirked and shook his head.

"When will you learn? I only need one hand to beat you."

Kairi popped her head up and said,

"But you're not fighting with a baby."

Riku passed by Sora, just brushing his shoulder, and went to sit next to the base of the tree when the flame in his womb gave a surge and he grabbed his stomach with his free hand. This action didn't go unnoticed by his friends and Kairi was the first to ask.

"What's wrong, Riku?"

He looked around at both of his friends and thought it better not to beat around the bush.

"Well, it's complicated."

Sora sat on the ground next to Kairi and said,

"Try me."

Riku sighed and said,

"Axel's coming back."


	4. Chapters 4 and 5

Kingdom Hearts

**Kingdom Hearts**

**Rebirth in Raindrops**

"Axel!" Sora gasped. "How do you know?"

Riku took Sora's hand and placed it on his stomach. Sora recoiled when he felt the staggering heat emanating from within Riku.

"But… that would mean…"

Riku nodded. "I'm pregnant, Sora."

"Baby Demyx already here and little Axel on the way," Sora mused. "I wonder how many other members of Organization XIII are going to come back."

"Um, Sora…" Kairi said, hesitatingly.

"Kairi?!" Sora yelped. "You, too?!"

Kairi nodded. "Xemnas injected me with the heart of one of the others. He didn't tell me who it was, but my sense of smell has increased since it happened."

Riku, who remembered Castle Oblivion, realized who it had to be.

"Zexion," he told her.

"Riku," Sora said. "I've been thinking. With you bearing Axel, perhaps I should take care of little Demyx?"

Riku shook his head. "I'm fine," he told the others. "Besides, I've grown attached to him."

Sora nodded.

**Kingdom Hearts**

**Rebirth in Raindrops**

-Time Skip: 3 years, 8 months-

The strain of caring for two children had turned out to be too much for Riku, who had almost died while giving birth to Axel, despite undergoing a c-section, when the flame within him hit the air and caused a deep burn which required a hysterectomy. Unable to bear it the stress, he'd relented and allowed Sora to raise little Demyx.

He, Sora, and Kairi were still the best of friends and they still met at the Paopu tree every day, each with his or her child in tow.

Little Demyx, Axel and Zexion played together regularly when their parents got together.

Today was Axel's third birthday. He was currently sitting on Riku's lap, while Riku helped him blow out the candles on the birthday cake. After Riku and the others had finished applauding, Riku helped Axel cut and serve the cake.

Axel, Demyx and Zexion ended up wearing more cake than they ate, which their parents affectionately cleaned up from their chocolate-covered faces before letting them down to play with Demyx's new toys.

King Mickey had come to the party. He had kept an eye on the three reborn members of Organization XIII since Demyx's return. So far they seemed truly innocent, though Demyx's memories of his old sitar worried him slightly.

Demyx was never without his plushy sitar. He 'played' it regularly, giving his papa a mini-concert every night. Had Sora been there, he would have recognized it as an attempt to play the same song he'd battled Sora with all those years ago.


End file.
